The Best Gift
by TeresaJane
Summary: It's Lisbon's birthday again, and she thinks Jane has forgotten. But she finds out that he definitely hasn't forgotten.


**A/N: Rrraaahhhh! SUMMER! Sun, good weather, no school... sunburn... no Internet (for me)... ... ...anyway, here's a little oneshot in honor of Robin Tunney's birthday today! Yay! Happy birthday, Robin! I have a lot of music in this one, as I love music, but _my song choices are not necessarily songs that Robin Tunney likes. Lisbon's views in this fic have nothing to do with Robin._ All mistakes are my own. I'm gonna stop talking now...**

**Disclaimer: In no way do I own anything that I write about in this fic. (where has my wit gone?)**

**Warnings: Mild language and fluff**

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Lisbon sighed, flipping through a file with more force than was required. Once again, Jane had forgotten her birthday present, and she couldn't deny that she was grumpy this time. And she was certain he had actually not remembered this time, because when Van Pelt had wished her a happy birthday, he had looked quite flustered. So he had not only failed to remember a present, but her birthday in general, as well.

_Jerk_, Lisbon thought bitterly. She knew she was being selfish, but she couldn't help it. She wanted a gift from him more than anything. The pony had been amazing - he always managed to surprise her, whether she liked it or not - but this year she was looking for something along the lines of a tiny... little... innocent... kiss.

She realized that it was hopeless to wish for _that_, but it's what she wanted. It wasn't her fault. _He_ was the one who was charming, smart, funny, handsome, just-tall-enough-for-her-to-have-to-stand-on-her-toes-to...

Okay, now it was her hormones talking. Lisbon was falling hard, but she wasn't sure if Jane would catch her by giving her what she wanted, even if it didn't mean anything, didn't start anything between them.

_It's not going to happen_, a smug voice in the back of her mind whispered.

"Shut up," Lisbon muttered back.

"So now _you're_ the mind reader?"

Lisbon, much to her embarrassment, jumped at the sound of Jane's voice. "That depends on what you were thinking," she said, trying and failing to conceal the blush creeping over her cheeks.

"I was just thinking about how nice you look in that shade of blue," he said, walking fully into her office. He grinned at her.

She looked away, her inner-teenager squee!-ing over his compliment. "I repeat, 'Shut up.'"

"So modest."

"That's me, Miss Modesty."

"And you're a poet."

"What do you want, Jane?"

He pouted. "I can't just visit you?"

"Not right now." Lisbon straightened some papers, stapled them, and put the stapler down, accidentally knocking over a box of paper clips. It then proceeded to spill, sending the clips all over the floor. "Damn," she muttered. "I'm very busy, as you can see." She got out of her chair and knelt down, scooping up paper clips. Jane joined her, making her flinch at his closeness.

"You're jumpy today," he commented.

"I've got a lot to do," Lisbon said stiffly, "and not enough time to do it, that's all." She noticed a paper clip Jane had missed and reached for it.

Bad move. Unbalanced, she fell forward, taking Jane with her.

_I hate my life, I hate my life_, she screamed silently, squirming in an attempt to right herself. But Jane was partly on top of her, and apparently didn't feel like moving.

"Falling for me, are you?" he quipped.

If Lisbon could have been anywhere else right then, she would have been at home, alone, watching movies and eating ice cream. But no, she had come to work, because she thought a certain someone would remember her birthday.

"Damn you, get off me!" she said, struggling under his weight.

"Oh, fine." Jane moved away, propping himself up on his elbows. Lisbon stood up, replacing the paper clips and closing the box securely with a piece of tape. She saw Jane looking up at her, watching her, and it was all she could do not to jump on him and rip his clothes off. She blinked and sat down in her chair again, trying to ignore the fantasy racing through her head.

"Jane, get up," she said. "You look like an idiot."

"No, I don't."

Lisbon agreed with him (not aloud, of course), thinking he looked more like a blonde Adonis, waiting for her to join him. Oh, how she wished she could.

"Yes, you do. Now get up."

"Killjoy," Jane grumbled. He rose and went to stand beside Lisbon's chair. "Why are you so grumpy today?"

"I'll give you a hint," she said, glaring at him. "Pony," she spat.

"What does a pony... oh, Lisbon, you think I forgot your birthday?"

"Yes."

"Lisbon, I would never forget _your_ birthday," Jane said. "I just haven't said, 'Happy Birthday' yet. Or given you your present, which I do have... sort of." Seeing the look she gave him, he quickly added, "You'll see what I mean when you get it... them..."

_Them?_ She only wanted one kiss originally, but she supposed she could survive more than one.

"I don't believe you," she told him.

"Look in your pillowcase at home," Jane said simply. With a wink that made Lisbon's heart spasm, he left.

She had planned on staying at work, having a little party with her team later, but that would have to wait. She had to see what Jane had put in her pillowcase. How had he gotten into her apartment, anyway? Illegally, most likely.

Lisbon grabbed what she needed and walked into the bullpen. She found Van Pelt and told her she was leaving for awhile, but would be back. The red-haired agent wished her a happy birthday again as she left under the amused gaze of Jane.

Lisbon caught herself speeding several times before she was even halfway home. She was anxious to see what Jane had left her. Hopefully it wasn't her gift... but, no, he'd said "them," she reminded herself. After almost hitting the car in front of her, she forced herself to not think about it until she got to her apartment. When she opened the door, she made a beeline for her bedroom, again wondering what could possibly fit in a pillowcase. She sat on her bed stripped the pillowcase off her single pillow. Something fell to the floor. An envelope.

Tossing aside pillow and pillowcase, she picked up the envelope and opened it. Instead of a card, she pulled out a piece of paper with songs and their artists written on them in Jane's handwriting. At the top were the words, _Happy Birthday! I know this seems childish, but I wanted to make you smile, as you seldom do around me. As you probably already saw, this is a list of songs and songwriters. Look them up using YouTube. Don't hate me! I guarantee this will be the best present you've ever received._

"Don't bet on it," Lisbon said. Nothing could be better than what she wanted. She studied the list. It was front and back, the writing so tiny that she could barely read it. She estimated that there were about a hundred songs here.

Guess she wasn't going back to work today. Tiredly, she went downstairs to her computer and booted it up. The first song was "Just To See You Smile" by Tim McGraw. "This better be worth it, Jane," she muttered, typing it into the search engine at YouTube. She clicked on the first link she saw and turned up the volume on the speakers. The music started playing, and Lisbon soon found herself totally immersed in the song. Now she understood. Jane was trying to tell her that he'd do anything to make her happy. The other songs probably were something similar.

When the first song had ended, she moved on to the next: "I'll Be Waiting" by Lenny Kravitz. It was one of her personal favorites, but she'd never had time to watch the music video. Only after listening and watching did she realize it was a love song. She sat in stunned silence for a minute, then hurriedly went to the next song, which was "Since You Brought It Up" by James Otto. After that one, Lisbon was blushing crazily. What was Jane trying to do, make her die of embarrassment? Trying to forget those lyrics, she read the title of the next song and wished she could skip it: "Nothin' On But The Radio" by Gary Allan. Yep, he was definitely trying to kill her.

Lisbon finished the list at exactly 11:02 p.m. with the 112th song on the list, "Tonight" by Alex Band. Why did everything these days have to be about vampires? Not that she hadn't enjoyed Twilight...

Suddenly, her doorbell rang, nearly making her jump out of her skin. Who in their right mind would be here at this time of night? There was only one person Lisbon could think of: Jane. But _why_ was he here?

The bell rang again, so she got up and went to the door, unlocking and opening it. It _was_ Jane. Before she could drag him inside and beat him for his song choices, he held out a cupcake with a single candle on it. Her anger immediately faded away as she took the cupcake from him, speechless.

"Happy birthday, Lisbon," he said.

"Thank you," she said. "Come in. I just watched the last video on your list."

Jane stepped inside. "Did you like the songs?" he asked eagerly.

"Most of them. Some of them were..." She trailed off, blushing again and staring at her cupcake as though it were the most fascinating thing in the world.

"I did that on purpose." Jane grinned. "Did you listen to the lyrics or just watch the videos?"

"Both. Where did you find those songs?"

"I have people," he said mysteriously.

"Mmm. I see." Lisbon looked at him, a playful glint in her eyes. "So, do I really have an invisible touch?" she said, referring to a song by Genesis that had been #27 on the list.

"Yes, you do," Jane answered. He looked at her cupcake. "I made that myself, you know, so you'd better like it."

"I'm sure I will," she murmured. "Another question: Is everything I do really magic?" That song by The Police had been one of her favorites.

"Yes."

"O-Oh," she stammered. She hadn't expected his answer to either question. She was quite sure that with every breath she took she was getting closer to what she wanted.

"Are you going to eat that?"

"Yes."

"Wait!" Jane put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a lighter. He flicked it on and lit the candle. "Do you want me to sing?"

"No," Lisbon said quickly. Before he could interrupt, she made her wish and blew out the candle. She walked to her couch and sat down, with Jane right behind her. She broke the cupcake in half and handed part of it to him.

"I was going to make you a cake," he said, "but I'm not much of a baker."

"Get ready to call Poison Control," Lisbon teased, biting into her piece of cupcake. "Not bad," she said.

"You were my guinea pig," Jane said, popping his piece into his mouth.

Lisbon followed suit, setting the candle and wrapper on her coffee table. She had one more question for him. "Jane," she said hesitantly, "do you know what I really want?"

"I think I can probably guess. Let's see if I'm right." He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. Her heart literally stopped, and she froze. Then he pulled away, and her heart started beating again. "I think I'm right," he murmured.

"You're right," she said breathlessly. He smiled and kissed her again, and Lisbon could truthfully say that this was the best birthday she'd ever had.

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**A/N: I typed this whole thing in, like, an hour and a half, the second half off the top of my head, so if it's crap, I'm sorry. Could you review anyway? Pretty please with cherries and chocolate and sprinkles on top? (I woke up at 8:30 this morning and have not yet eaten anything.)**


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